Students and staff are taking the time to appreciate the Finer Things in life

They could imagine their classmates, sitting around a table discussing the finer things of life;  be dressed in a Mexican flag and mustache; Caroline in a military jacket, bow tie, and revolutionary cap; Katie wearing a sweater and an antique hat.  As students dressed in all black with sombreros, or costumes similar to the leaders, crossed the threshold of the club to sit at an elegant table laden with snacks, all thoughts of Twilight and boys and drama would disappear to be replaced with thoughts up to their intellectual level.

This is the thought that juniors Caroline Miller, Betsy Blessen, and Katie Darling shared as they sat at lunch one autumn day, discussing the Finer Things League and creating the application for their League. It needed to be a median between fun and goofy, but also intellectual and functional. After much concentration and work, the three came up with important questions that it was necessary for candidates of the League to fill out:

“Twilight or Harry Potter? Paper or Plastic? Coke or Pepsi? Chocolate or Vanilla? If you answered “I’m better than these questions” or “Neither” to all of the above questions, then you’re the perfect candidate for a membership of the league.”

Welcome to Shawnee Mission East’s Finer Things League.

If you complete the application and are deemed suitable for the league (everyone is), then you will be  lucky enough to take part in a scene that Miller, Blessen and Darling drew from NBC’s show “The Office.” This comedy is about a colorful group of colleagues–Pam, Oscar, Toby–in an office and their antics. Several of the characters (Pam, Oscar, and Toby) dress up and take part in fine dining and intellectual discussion at an exclusive club, which they call the Finer Things Club.

East’s League will be similar to the Office’s in that they will dress up and eat delicious food. However, although the founders joke around about the exclusivity of the league and the level of intellect that’s necessary, anyone is welcome in the league.

Blessen, Miller, and Darling picture a mulititude of students snacking on gourmet foods, such as cheese, crackers, desserts, and grape juice, and discussing or listening to an intellectual and captivating discussion. Supervising in the back would be Precalc Honors teacher Chris Burrows, the sponsor of the club.

“We wanted someone nice and who everyone likes to sponsor the club,” Blessen said. “It took us about five seconds to think of Mr. Burrows.”

During 7th hour, Darling and Miller asked if Burrows would like to take part in the club. As soon as the girls asked him, Burrows immediately said no. He reconsidered though after hearing that dessert would be provided.

“It’s up to them really,” Burrows said. “I’m just happy to supervise and give them somewhere to meet.”

Miller, Blessen, and Darling hope to have the club up and running soon. They would like to have a meeting within one or two weeks after Thanksgiving break. At the first meeting, people will just fill out the application so that they can get to know everyone and a book will be assigned.

The books they are looking into reading are anything by Sigmund Freud, Socrates, Aristotle, or even the Dictionary.

“We considered starting with Webster’s Dictionary,” Blessen said. “But then we thought this might be above the level of some kids at our school.”

Although the Webster’s Dictionary might be too advanced for most readers, the League leaders hope to help students explore some books that they wouldn’t normally read because of their difficulty level while having fun in a high-class atmosphere.

Whether you are interested in the conversation, or simply want to dress up and dine, the Finer Things League is the club for everyone.